A Long Convo With… Game

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With his fourth studio album, The R.E.D. Album, dropping this summer, Game is packing serious heat. The Compton rapper played it mellow, chopping it up with VIBE about his new project, the new West, Shyne and the return of the D.R.E.

VIBE: What was the difference between working with Dr. Dre on the first album [The Documentary] versus this one?

Game:I’m a lot more polished. I think that I’m close to my prime, as far as my lyrical content… just the development of my pen alone. And then Dre, you know, we’re both a little older and a little wiser. Now it’s not like polishing off the rookie, its like he gets in he knows what to do and I know what to do and he knows me and we just gel. What comes out is nothing short of classic.

Compare that to the Pharrell experience.

We worked for 40 days and 40 nights. Long hard nights, until the morning. Mind you, Pharrell leaves the studio at 10 [p.m.], that’s his norm. But working with me, you don’t leave til’ the sun comes up. We grinded it out and we made smashes, man.

If you were to put a tour together right now to support this record, who would be on it?

I think Dre’s talking about a tour, so that would be dope. And me and Pharrell talked about going on a tour together, which would also be dope. So I think just the benefit of getting up on stage with new music for my fans, it don’t really matter who I go out with. I can go out by myself and get the job done all the same. I just cant wait to grab the mic hit the stage and hear those cheers again.

“[Dre] can push [Detox] back for eight more years and it’ll just be that much bigger.”

Talk to us about working on that Detox album.

I’ll let you know that right now it’s definitely, definitely going to come, and Dre’s been working harder than ever. Everybody’s been in and out the studio. I’ve been in grinding with him, I’m going back in tomorrow to actually work some more, and get it to where we can all come to that happy medium where we’re like. ‘Damn, we finally got Detox and man it’s crazy.’ I can definitely guarantee you that however long he makes us wait—he can push it back for eight more years and it’ll just be that much bigger, man—’cause Dre’s not gonna put it out until it’s 100 percent the idea he had when he started, and hopefully he picked the dates. I don’t pick the dates but I just can tell you I’ve been working on it.

You talked to Shyne while he was incarcerated, and he gave you some advice. Have you had a chance to talk to him since he’s been released?